The present invention relates to an adjustable sensor supporting and mounting apparatus for carrying a sensor such as a video camera or infra-red sensing device in an aircraft or other moving platform, reducing or eliminating vibration of the platform as experienced by the sensor, and which allows the direction of the camera or other sensor to be controlled by the operator of the helicopter or other moving platform.
In certain situations, including firefighting, rescue, wildlife observation and trailing, and law enforcement operations it is desired to have quickly available airborne cameras and video transmitting equipment. This has previously required costly use of fairly large helicopters, for example. News gathering organizations wanting to obtain on-the-spot images of newsworthy events similarly have had to have both an aircraft pilot and a camera operator quickly available, with a helicopter large enough to carry two people plus the required camera equipment or other sensors and transmitting equipment. This requirement has limited the utility of smaller, less-expensive helicopters and non-dedicated, or multipurpose, helicopters and fixed wing aircraft as news-gathering vehicles and for the other sensor uses mentioned above. It has also required the availability of a cameraman in addition to a helicopter pilot, thus requiring the arrival of two people before departure of the aircraft toward the location of an event in progress.
Because of the need in the past for an aircraft with the ability to carry the weight of a camera operator or special camera mounting and stabilizing equipment it has been necessary for on-scene airborne photographers to use larger aircraft, with operating costs of several times the cost of operating popular small two-passenger helicopters.
Camera operators attempting to obtain video images or photographs of events taking place without externally mounted equipment are usually required to view the events through the side windows or doorway openings of aircraft, particularly helicopters, in order to obtain an unobstructed view, particularly for infrared cameras and sensors. The side door has the advantage of giving an unobstructed view to the side, allowing the aircraft to circle or hover keeping a target in view, but it may also be desired to use video equipment or cameras to photograph objects straight ahead or in other positions as well. Use of a hand-held camera inside a small aircraft for such views is often impractical because of limited cabin size. Also, use of hand-held video cameras may subject camera operators to motion sickness, even though the normal location of a passenger's seat in a small aircraft often provides an ideal viewpoint.
The additional weight of gyro stabilizing equipment for motion picture or video cameras may make use of such stabilizing equipment impractical in very small aircraft. Special mounts for carrying remotely controllable cameras externally of an aircraft's cabin are extremely expensive and may also be too heavy for use on small helicopters or other light aircraft. Such equipment, when installed, may also impair the availability of an aircraft for other desirable uses, such as for pilot training. Additionally, such devices may require approval of governmental agencies before they can be permanently mounted on any particular model of aircraft.
Vibration of a helicopter because of its rotors, or vibration of other aircraft or motor vehicles because of their engines or surfaces being traveled on, can be a problem in obtaining useful camera images. While gyroscopic image stabilization devices are available for some cameras, such devices are expensive and may not be capable of dealing with all of the vibration associated with operation of helicopter or other moving platform on which a camera or other sensor is carried.
Attention to some of the foregoing needs and problems has been noted in prior patents including Greenlee U.S. Pat. No. 4,621,786, McKay U.S. Pat. No. 4,685,649, Vasconi U.S. Pat. No. 5,876,005, Bothe, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,871,186, Meinel U.S. Pat. No. 5,769,369, Pinson U.S. Pat. No. 4,531,699, Leavitt U.S. Pat. No. 3,638,502, and U.K. Patent Application No. GB 2 161 668A, but those teachings have not provided entirely satisfactory solutions.
What is desired, then, is an improved apparatus and a method for its use for carrying a sensor such as a camera in a helicopter or automobile, or on another moving platform, and for enabling the camera or other sensor to be operated by the helicopter pilot or operator of such other vehicle. Such apparatus should be easily and quickly installed on or removed from a non-dedicated vehicle and easily adjusted to a desired or preferred position and orientation with respect to the helicopter or other platform. The apparatus should substantially isolate the camera or other sensor from vibrations of the helicopter or other platforms, without being unnecessarily complex.
Preferably, such a sensor supporting apparatus should be easily constructed and of modest cost and should not require structural modification of the helicopter or other platform in connection with its installation therein.